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The Penguins may have a lineup stripped of all of their scorers and stars, but one steady remains. His name is Jeff Zatkoff. His numbers this month? 6-1-0 with a 1.28 GAA and a .955 save percentage, including two shutouts.

If that isn’t enough to win AHL’s Goaltender of the Month for December, I would love to see the guy who does.

Zatkoff’s 24 save performance is enough to propel the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins to a 2-0 win over the rival Hershey Bears and a four point cushion over Hershey in the East Division Standings.

Zatkoff was opposed by Philipp Grubauer, starting his second game in less than 24 hours. Grubauer aided the Bears to a 2-1 win over Norfolk last night.

Wilkes-Barre got help from Pittsburgh in the form of Dominik Uher and Brian Dumoulin. That said, this is what the lines looked like tonight…

Conor Sheary – Nick Drazenovic – Tom Kostopoulos
Sahir Gill – Carter Rowney – Josh Archibald
Tom Kuhnhackl – JS Dea – Dominik Uher
Pierrre Leblond – Matia Marcantuoni – Zack Torquato

Taylor Chorney – Brian Dumoulin
Reid McNeill – Barry Goers
Nick D’Agostino – Alex Boak

Jeff Zatkoff – Matt Murray

Notes: Reid McNeill was back from his illness. It was reported yesterday that he was being isolated from his teammates and tested for possible mumps….Clark Seymour took warmups but was scratched.

First Period: Went scoreless. Wilkes-Barre had three power play opportunities in the period but were up against the AHL’s top penalty killing unit in Hershey.

Second Period: Hershey got a power play chance. Wilkes-Barre really took advantage of opportunities shorthanded, Carter Rowney had a Grade A chance. Fun fact, the Penguins have yet to score or be scored on shorthanded.

Conor Sheary was everywhere this game. He created chance after chance. Late, Cameron Schilling was booked for interference with under a minute to play. On the ensuing power play, Brian Dumoulin found space at the top of the blue line, fired and Tom Kostopoulos got a stick on it for the deflection goal to put the Pens ahead 1-0.

Big goal at the time, because to this point, it was a chess match.

Third Period: Grubauer would exit with a lower body injury. He would go down to make a save and not get back up. He needed assistance off. Just prior to, he absolutely robbed Sheary with the pad. Sheary never was able to elevate the puck.

Enter Pheonix Copley. Penguins power play. Nothing doing.

Tom Kostopoulos and Hershey captain Dane Byers fought. Byers took down Kostopoulos with a big overhand right.

Wilkes-Barre had to then kill two consecutive penalties. With shot blocking and big time saves from Jeff Zatkoff, they were successful.

Dominik Uher picked off a Bear right in front of Copley and scored with under a minute to play to make it 2-0. Uher’s birthday is December 31.

Three Stars: 3) Dominik Uher (goal, +1) 2) Tom Kostopoulos (goal, even) 1) Jeff Zatkoff (24 save shutout)

Around the Division: Binghamton beat Lehigh Valley at home 6-2. Norfolk was off.

Standings: Penguins 41 — Hershey 37 — Binghamton 33 — Lehigh Valley 33 — Norfolk 25

Conference: 1) MCH (48) 2) SPR (46) 3) WBS (41) 4) SYR (44) 5) HFD (38) 6) HER (37) 7) PRO (35) 8) POR (35)

Wheeling Update: The Nailers were off today. They are in Fort Wayne, Indiana Friday.

You Tube highlights…

Worth noting that Pittsburgh is finally getting healthy again. It looks like a defenseman and two forwards will be on the way back soon, likely in time for Friday’s game vs. Binghamton. I may drop a blurb in on the blog here Thursday. If not, next blog update will be the Friday setup vs. Binghamton.

Let’s Go Pens!!!

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With literally half of the team either injured or on recall to Pittsburgh, if I told you that the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins would only lose one point off of their five point lead coming into this weekend, do you take it?

If you say no, you are a liar.

The Penguins defeated the Norfolk Admirals Sunday afternoon by a score of 2-1. The Penguins once again enjoyed the services of Nick Drazenovic, returning from illness and Brian Dumoulin, retuning from Pittsburgh. It was announced during the game that Dominik Uher was recalled to Pittsburgh. The Penguins play the New Jersey Devils Monday night.

So the lead on the Bears shrinks one point to four, with Hershey having two games in hand on the Penguins. Wilkes-Barre plays the Bears twice this upcoming week.

Matt Murray started the game and was sharp when he needed to be. He was beat in the second period by a low shot by Dave Steckel after a busted Penguin line change.

The Penguins got goals from Conor Sheary in the first period and Nick Drazenovic in the third. The Sheary goal was a rebound of shots that Drazenovic and Tom Kostopoulos were peppering Norfolk starting goaltender Jason LaBarbera with. The Drazenovic goal was a laser that he unleashed on the far wall that went crossbar and in.

The Sheary goal ended a shutout streak that lasted 173:33 going back to last Saturday in Binghamton and two shutouts this Friday in Binghamton and Saturday at home against Bridgeport.

The Penguins had to kill :54 of a 5-on-3 late in the first and kept the Admirals off the board on special teams all night.

Wilkes-Barre used a team effort of shot blocking in the third period. Matt Murray only faced four shots.

Drazenovic’s re-entry into the lineup was felt immediately. He had a goal and an assist and factored into all of the offense tonight. He was the first star of the game. The second star was Conor Sheary, who has really been the only steady presence that the Penguins have had all season. Matt Murray stopped 26 of 27 shots to take home third star honors.

No one else in the division played tonight.

Standings are Penguins with 39 points, Hershey with 35, Lehigh Valley with 33, Binghamton with 31 and Norfolk with 25.

Conference is Manchester and Springfield with 46 points, Wilkes-Barre with 39, Syracuse with 44, Hartford with 38, Hershey with 35, Albany and Bridgeport with 34 each.

The Nailers played three skaters short and lost to South Carolina by a score of 5-1. The Nailers lost Tyler Murovich to recall to Wilkes-Barre early this morning. Murovich was probably insurance for Drazenovic, in case he couldn’t go. He participated in warmups but didn’t dress.

The only other lineup change was Paul Cianfrini for Brian Dumoulin.

Highlights, via Youtube…

My Week 12 AHL Power Rankings hit the blog at 4 p.m. Monday. Unless the calvary returns in time for the New Years Eve bash with Hershey, expect the next blog update after Monday’s Rankings to be the Wednesday Gameday setup against Hershey at 11 a.m., for the special 3:05 start.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Anyone with any kind of hockey sense will realize that this type of outcome and this type of performance was inevitable, with the injuries that are crippling the Pittsburgh and Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins.

Let’s look around. Pittsburgh lost tonight to the Washington Capitals by a score of 3-0 with a lineup full of AHL caliber talent.

Wilkes-Barre meanwhile, loses this one by a score of 5-0 with a lineup full of ECHL caliber talent.

Wheeling finally, loses 3-1 to South Carolina with a lineup full of what’s left of an ECHL team and filled in with guys off the street and talent from the Southern Professional Hockey League.

Suffice to say, the results were typical and expected tonight.

You just hope that when the injury bug does hit, that you have build up yourself enough of a lead to sustain the rough times and endure the fall. For the Penguins, a five point lead coming into the weekend has been trimmed to two.

That’s the way that I as a fan looks at it. That’s the way anyone who doesn’t think that the Penguins of the NHL, the Penguins of the AHL or the Nailers of the ECHL should win every single game by ten goals should look at it.

Coaches are paid to win. So of course Mike Johnston, John Hynes and Clark Donatelli are going to give the Seth Rorabaugh’s, Jonathan Bombulie’s and Shawn Rine’s of the world some talk like, “we didn’t execute” or, “we don’t look at the lineup, we look at guys that can play and execute the system.” That’s what they are paid to say. Do you honestly expect John Hynes to say to Tom Venesky, “Tom, what they hell did you expect with half my team in Pittsburgh?” No.

Pittsburgh got Robert Bortuzzo and Bobby Farnham back from injury tonight but may have lost Patric Hornqvist and Kris Letang to injury in tonight’s setback to the Capitals. The hits keep on coming.

Anyway, this game. Wilkes-Barre has been scoreless now for 166:16 going back to their first period goal in Binghamton last Saturday night.

Personnel wise, Zack Torquato and Patrick McGrath joined the team today via PTO last night. Jayson Megna and Jeff Zatkoff were recalled to Pittsburgh this morning. Adam Payerl missed tonight’s game and is out, “a while” according to John Hynes as told to by Tom Venesky and Reid McNeill and Nick Drazenovic are, “sick.”

Bridgeport scored their first goal in the first period after an end-to-end start that resulted in Kael Mouillerat scoring off of a one timer that beat staring goaltender Matt Murray at 8:25.

Colin McDonald scored at the tail end of a Bridgeport 5-on-3 to make it 2-0 in favor of the Sound Tigers in the second period.

Then, Bridgeport scored two goals within :50 of one another.

Scott Mayfield shot the puck at the net but it deflected off of Barry Goers skates right to Sebastian Collberg in front to make it 3-0.

Scooter Vaughn then scored from a ridiculous angle to make it 4-0 fifty seconds later.

Penguins opened the third with a power play, closed with a power play but Wilkes-Barre was unable to capitalize. Late, with eleven seconds left, Colin McDonald scored to make it 5-0.

Three stars were, Sebastian Collberg with a goal and an assist and a +2, David Leggio with a 19 save shutout and Colin McDonald with two goals, an assist and a +3.

Bridgeport has shutout the weekend. Leggio tonight, Kevin Poulin last night against Providence.

Binghamton beat Hershey 4-3 in overtime and Lehigh Valley beat Norfolk in a shootout 3-2. Points for everyone in the division except Wilkes-Barre.

Division looks like this: Penguins with 37, Hershey with 35, Lehigh Valley with 33, Binghamton with 31 and Norfolk with 25.

Conference is Manchester with 46, Springfield with 44, Wilkes-Barre with 37, Syracuse with 43, Hartford with 38, Hershey with 35, Albany with 34 and Bridgeport with 34.

The Sound Tigers are in last place in the Northeast Division yet hold down the eight spot in the Conference. The East Division is no longer the best division in the AHL. The Northeast Division holds that distinction.

It could be worse. We could be all Iowa Wild fans and this blog could be named “Chirps from the Cornfield” or something. The Wild lost 9-2 in Grand Rapids tonight.

Back at it Sunday at 4 vs. the Norfolk Admirals. Gameday setup hits the blog at noon.

Let’s Go Pens!